Whatever the question, love is the answer...
Nature & Nurture Reading - March 14
"A God-Centered life is not about leaving the world and nature. Quite the contrary. It means finding ways in engage in life and nature more deeply, with all of the senses.
"Seeking God became for me the ultimate ecological expression. But it is one thing to accept the idea of God in my mind, and quite another to allow the presence of God to penetrate my being, take root in my body, and inform my feelings and behaviors -- for God to be alive in my heart.
"If I could actually live this reality, that God created heaven and earth, then my life would be enriched with the miraculousness of everything. I would know deeply that the world is founded in generosity and love. I would give more than I would take; I would be more compassionate, less judgmental, more aware that all of my actions, even all of my thoughts have repercussions in the mysterious round of life.
"And if all people could remember this and act on their awareness, then I imagine that we would finally learn to care for the world.
"If God exists in everything and everyone, if the world and everything it holds is sacred, then we have no choice but to find and lift up the godly sparks in all of life. According to the Jewish mystics when the world was created, God poured light into the original unformed mass, forming ten etheric vessels. But the vessels were not strong enough to contain the light and they shattered, leaving the shards of the vessels embedded in the matter of the world. It is our task, in the language of the Jewish mystics, to retrieve the shards of the holy vessels and put the pieces back together again.
"Nothing could be more difficult, really, than taking God seriously. If we were to accept the presence of God in our lives, we would walk more quietly, eat more deliberately, take time for loving each other, and act with curiosity and sensitivity to all things. We would treat the whole world as a gift."
Excerpted from The Splendor of Creation by Ellen Bernstein
"Seeking God became for me the ultimate ecological expression. But it is one thing to accept the idea of God in my mind, and quite another to allow the presence of God to penetrate my being, take root in my body, and inform my feelings and behaviors -- for God to be alive in my heart.
"If I could actually live this reality, that God created heaven and earth, then my life would be enriched with the miraculousness of everything. I would know deeply that the world is founded in generosity and love. I would give more than I would take; I would be more compassionate, less judgmental, more aware that all of my actions, even all of my thoughts have repercussions in the mysterious round of life.
"And if all people could remember this and act on their awareness, then I imagine that we would finally learn to care for the world.
"If God exists in everything and everyone, if the world and everything it holds is sacred, then we have no choice but to find and lift up the godly sparks in all of life. According to the Jewish mystics when the world was created, God poured light into the original unformed mass, forming ten etheric vessels. But the vessels were not strong enough to contain the light and they shattered, leaving the shards of the vessels embedded in the matter of the world. It is our task, in the language of the Jewish mystics, to retrieve the shards of the holy vessels and put the pieces back together again.
"Nothing could be more difficult, really, than taking God seriously. If we were to accept the presence of God in our lives, we would walk more quietly, eat more deliberately, take time for loving each other, and act with curiosity and sensitivity to all things. We would treat the whole world as a gift."
Excerpted from The Splendor of Creation by Ellen Bernstein
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